The Triple-A Int'l League Charlotte Knights -- who "drew a minor league-best 687,715 spectators" last year during the club's inaugural season at BB&T Ballpark in uptown Charlotte -- have "been selected to host" the '16 Triple-A All-Star Game, according to Seth Lakso of the CHARLOTTE OBSERVER. The game will be held July 13 and broadcast on MLB Network. Knights COO Dan Rajkowski said the team began lobbying for the event "almost three years ago." He added, "We were pretty aggressive in going after this. We firmly believed that Charlotte would be the best host for this game and we knew we wanted to host it sooner rather than later." Lakso notes the ballpark "hosted last year’s Triple-A National Championship game," and MiLB officials were impressed by the $55M facility and "the fact that 8,500 fans packed the park despite a rain delay that lasted nearly two hours." That night "played a large role" in the Knights earning Triple-A's "most prestigious event." The All-Star Game itself "will be the culmination of a three-day affair that begins with a home run derby on Monday night." Tuesday has "traditionally been reserved for a luncheon and gala for players and team executives" (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 2/5). In Charlotte, Erik Spanberg noted there also will be a "fan festival." Tickets for the game "will go on sale early next year, with Knights suite and club-seat owners given the first option to buy" (BIZJOURNALS.com, 2/4).
